The Relationship of Self Esteem of Skin Color in African American Culture Essay Example for Free

The Relationship of Self Esteem of Skin Color in African American Culture Essay The Relationship of Self Esteem and Skin Color 2 This paper explores the relationship between skin tone preference and the effect it has on self esteem in the African American community. As early as slavery in America there has been an assumed preference to lighter or more fair skinned African Americans. Many in the culture seem to believe that lighter skin represents beauty and equates to greater earning potential and increased opportunity. Articles by McAdoo, 1998; Ross, 1997; Russell, Wilson and Hall 1992, discuss how skin tone is used to differentiate and apply social values and self worth for African Americans. This belief led to self hate for some in the community and an increase in the use of skin whitening products in an effort to become more socially accepted and increase attractiveness to the opposite sex. Whitening appeared to be a boost to self esteem on the outside, but it really only created a false sense of confidence and acceptance. Since slavery, skin color has been used as a means of separation among those in the black community. The darker skinned slaves were usually resigned to work out in the sun in the fields while the lighter skinned slaves, who were generally the offspring of the master and a female slave were usually allowed to perform work inside the house. This led to anger by the darker field worker that still lingers on to this day. Growing up as a young boy the difference of skin tone never really seemed to be an issue but when I reached adolescence and started attending junior high school I experienced this ugliness for the first time. I was growing up in the eighties when most of the most successful blacks seen on television were lighter skinned. I particularly remember the family group Debarge as the teen heartthrobs of black teens at that time. They were all light skinned, with what we The Relationship of Self Esteem and Skin Color 3 called â€Å"good hair† due to their mixed heritage. If a kid did not fit that criterion he was not considered to be one of the â€Å"it† guys and your chances of dating were exponentially decreased. I and many began to see early that it was assumed that lighter skin meant better and received more privilege. I, at times, had feelings of self hate because I felt I was not good enough. I soon began to see members of my family using skin lightening cream to brighten their skin even by the ones who were not really dark at all. This leads me to the election of the United States first African American president. This was a joyous occasion in the African American community as many thought they would never see this happen in their lifetimes. Although, this was a historic moment some people questioned if President Obama would have been elected if he â€Å"looked more black† and less Eurocentric. Was it his clean cut look and light skin that made him seem less threatening to mainstream America? This sentiment was echoed by Senator Harry Reid in the Book Game Change: Obama and the Clinton’s, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime (Heilemann and Halperin, 2010), â€Å"He (Reid) was wowed by Obama’s oratorical gifts and believed that the country was ready to embrace a black presidential candidate, especially one such as Obama- a ‘light skinned’ African American ‘with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one’ †. Senator Reid would go on to apologize for his insensitive remarks but the those words were proof positive that this type of stereotyping not only existed in the African American community but was alive and well in the conscience of main stream America as well. The thought of skin tone separation seems antiquated to most, but from time to time we get occasionally reminders that we still have a ways to go to rid ourselves of the self hatred of The Relationship of Self Esteem and Skin Color 4 past generations. The words of those like Senator Reid will soon be forgotten by the general public, but for those in the African American community who have experienced this type of bias will never forget.